Men had 126 drug packages 'internally concealed'

Saturday 23 November 2019

Two Englishmen have been sent to prison for trying to import up to £19,000 worth of cannabis by swallowing over 100 latex packages before flying into Guernsey.

Peter Stevens, 52, was sentenced to five years and six months for trying to bring 301g of cannabis resin, 12.64g of MDMA and 140 etizolam tablets through the airport, while Lee Alan Smith, 42, was sentenced to three years for attempting to import 353g of cannabis resin.

Both men were stopped together at Guernsey Airport on 24 May this year, having arrived on a flight from Exeter. They came to Customs' attention when a detector dog gave a 'strong signal' toward the pair. 

They were taken to the side for interviews, where they said they were coming to Guernsey to fix up Stevens' boat in Beaucette Marina. Stevens had been in the UK to look after his ailing mother, and Smith was a friend of his who was coming to help with the work.

Pictured: The GBA were warned of the men thanks to a detector dog. 

When GBA Officers asked if Stevens had used any drugs recently, he said he hadn't, but swabs of his toothbrush, clothes and shoes all detected traces of cocaine. The same happened in Smith's interview. Both men then admitted to using the class A drug in the last week, but maintained they didn't have any controlled drugs on them.

When Stevens was then told the Officers had been given permission to fully search him for drugs, he said to officers: "I'm so stupid, I have something" and admitted having internally concealed drugs. He was then given a white suit to wear and taken to the PEH, where he passed 23 latex wrapped packages.

Smith also tried to maintain that he didn't have any drugs, but when he was told Steven had consented to an X-ray he decided he would also comply, and said he had swallowed packages of cannabis, but no class A drugs. There were also two packages of cannabis in Smith's boxer shorts which the officers quickly found when they searched him.

When both of the defendants were at the hospital, they were seen by a nurse who confirmed they both had packages inside their systems. They were both kept under watch and monitored by a doctor for 48 hours, during which time they each passed the remainder of their packages. In total, Stevens passed 58 packages, and Smith 66, plus the two they had found in his underwear. Smith's packages were all cannabis resin, while one of Steven's contained MDMA, and one etizolam tablets - a class C drug.

Each of the cannabis packages weighed between 2g and 9g, and in total, the 655g the men had between them was valued at between £13,113 and £19,670. The MDMA Stevens had was valued at between £1,011 and £1,264.

Pictured: The men were sentenced by Guernsey's Royal Court. 

Smith's Advocate, Sam Steel, told Judge Russell Finch and the Jurats his client had been a mule in this case, because he had felt indebted to his friend who had helped  him two years ago when he was at a very difficult stage of his life. Stevens needed the money to help pay for his mother's care. Smith was also signed off work for anxiety in the UK, the Court heard.

Smith had swallowed the cannabis over a four hour period the day before. There was no evidence he knew Stevens was taking the Class A drug, so he was not charged for that offence. 

Advocate Paul Lockwood, Stevens' representative, told the Court how, indeed, his client had needed money to pay for the care, but since he had been arrested, his mother had died. Both advocates also pointed out the defendants had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity. 

Both men were remanded in custody since they were arrested in May, and so their prison sentences were dated back until then. 

"The use of stuffing and or swallowing as a method to conceal is always going to be looked on as an aggravating factor," Judge Finch said in sentencing. "You took a big risk, and you were captured. We do not appreciate that our island's valuable healthcare resources were used up on you.

"We need to dress that the importation of class A drugs is always treated very seriously."